Lafayette pulls away from Wagner for 35-23 win

Lafayette wide receiver Justin Adams breaks into the clear for a touchdown during the second quarter of the Leopards' victory over Wagner Saturday night.

Lafayette wide receiver Justin Adams breaks into the clear for a touchdown during the second quarter of the Leopards' victory over Wagner Saturday night. (Contributed photo/Lafayette College)

Paul ReinhardSpecial to The Morning Call

Things didn't look good for Ross Scheuerman in the second half Saturday night in Fisher Stadium. He was held to 43 yards rushing on his first 21 attempts, being held to negative yards almost as often as he made a gain.

But the senior Lafayette superstar broke loose on a pair of long touchdown runs in the fourth quarter to give his team all the breathing room it needed in a 35-23 victory over physical Wagner.

The 210-pound senior went 27 yards after a 15-yard chop-block penalty seemed to have ruined a Leopards scoring bid, and later on a third-and-11 play while the Leopards were trying to use up the clock, he suddenly found another opening and raced 55 yards for the final points of the night as Lafayette evened its season record at 2-2.

Wagner, which came in with a two-game losing streak and fresh legs after a bye week, gave Lafayette all it could handle from a physical standpoint. The Leopards lost starting quarterback Drew Reed and several other players to injuries, but each time, someone seemed to step in and do the job.

"That might be the most physical game I've played here in my career," said Scheuerman, whose 29 carries were a career high.. Definitely, by far, this season. That was a physical football team up front and they were bringing it."

Blake Searfoss, whose only meaningful play before Saturday night was one long drive in a FCS playoff game last November at New Hampshire, had to replace Reed at the quarterback spot, and he did it with a poise that might not be expected from a guy who has seen so little action.

In fact, the sophomore threw a pair of touchdown passes in the first half when Lafayette found rushing yardage hard to come by. He finished the game 14-for-23 passing for 173 yards and one interception.

Wagner, which had beaten Patriot League member Georgetown for its only victory of the season and had won its last four games against Patriot League teams, put the clamps on the Lafayette offense in the third quarter, when the Leopards had minus-six yards of total offense.

The Seahawks, who missed three field goals in the first half, climbed to within four points at the end of the third quarter and seemed to have Lafayette on the ropes and staggering.

But Scheuerman, who may be the most under-appreciated running back in the Patriot League – everywhere but Easton, that is – refused to stop bucking against the grain.

He had 27 negative yards in the game, but he wound up with 128 yards on 29 carries. And his two touchdown runs were gems. He also caught five passes for 91 yards to wind up with 219 all-purpose yards.

"There are a lot of ways to win a game and a lot of way to lose a game, and both of those things could have occurred at moment in that game," Coach Frank Tavani said afterward. "But as tough as it got and as bleak as it started to look, we kept battling and we were able to make the plays when we needed to do it."

The two teams traded surprise pass plays in the first quarter, which ended tied at 7.

Wagner's Brian Gehring hit a wide open Brandon Peoples on the Seahawks' first offensive play for 46-yard touchdown after the longest kickoff return of the season against the Leopards.

Lafayette came right back, however, and Ross Scheuerman, after getting stopped for losses on back-to-back plays a little earlier, took a handoff from Drew Reed on a first-down play, then tossed the ball back to Reed, who hit wide open Mike Duncan on a 43-yard touchdown play.

Searfoss hooked up with freshman Matt Mrazek for a touchdown in the second period after Steve Mercado recovered a Wagner fumble at the Seahawks' 9-yard line.

Then, pinned 92 yards award from a touchdown with a minute left in the first half, Lafayette could have taken a couple of knees and gone into the locker room with a one-touchdown lead.

Instead, the Leopards went on the attack, and with an assist from a costly taunting penalty against Wagner used only five plays to score a touchdown.

Blake Searfoss, who came into the game when starting quarterback Drew Reed suffered a shoulder injury in the second quarter, hit Justin Adams, who then slipped a tackle attempt by the Seahawks' Jarrett Dieudonne and took the ball to the end zone.

Wagner racked up 323 yards of total offense against the Lafayette defense, but in the second half, the defense held the Staten Island bunch at bay just enough to come out on top. Brian Gehring threw a pair of second-half touchdown passes for Wagner, but when it counted most, the Leopards held their ground.

Lafayette opens Patriot League play Friday night at Fordham. No rest for the weary.